Emmanuel Burriss thinks he’s a shortstop. Dusty Baker said he’d heard Burriss might be better suited for second base.

But after a pair of seasons on the mend, the former San Francisco Giant isn’t squabbling. He said Saturday, just before the Reds beat the Brewers 6-5 at Goodyear Ballpark, he’s just happy to be getting a fair shake this spring.

Burriss was in the Opening Day lineup for the Giants back in 2009, but later broke the outer bone in the small toe on his left foot, missing the rest of the season. The surgery to repair that break didn’t take, and he broke the same bone in 2010.

After toiling in obscurity the next two seasons, Burriss is now vying for a roster spot with the Reds, who signed him to a minor league contract last November.

He’s expected to get the start at short during a seven-inning ‘B’ game against the Dodgers in Glendale this morning. The starters will follow with a full nine-inning contest against the White Sox (4:05 p.m. EST) at Camelback Ranch.

Baker said he wasn’t surprised to see Burriss hitting .304 in his first 23 at-bats, and he’s still deciding where the infielder might be the best fit.

“He’s a good athlete. Through injuries you lose your job sometimes,” Baker said. “He has speed, he has good hands. We had heard he’s a better second baseman than a shortstop. Sometimes, you fall out of favor in that position. To me, he looks like he can play both.”

Burriss skipped a number of steps on the development ladder when he went from Single-A in 2007 to playing 95 games with the Giants in 2008. But while the early portion of his career moved along like lightning, Burriss said the past few seasons have seemed painstakingly slow. That’s why he’s happy to hear Baker’s talking about him at all.

“It’s good to hear Dusty speaking well of me. It’s not about surprising anybody, it’s more about proving to myself and to the rest of the league that I can play. I’ve had a tough few years, things that stunted my development,” he said.

Even with the solid numbers, Burriss faces a tough road; to earn a spot he’ll need to knock somebody off the 40-man roster.

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Offensive worries: The Reds entered Saturday’s contest with the third-lowest run total in the Cactus League with 61 through 13 games, but that doesn’t have Baker worried.

He said he’s never happy with losing, but pointed out that Texas had one of the worst records in the loop last year, then went on to a postseason appearance.

“We know we’ve got a good team,” Baker said. “We’ve got to keep working and working.”

Oh, Henry: Henry Rodriguez got a start at second on Saturday and although the former Dayton Dragon has looked good at the plate, he’s struggled in the field. Rodriguez was charged with his fifth error of the spring in the second inning when he muffed a liner off the bat of Brewers designated hitter Kentrail Davis, allowing a run to score.

Extra bases: Justin Freeman and Tucker Barnhart were reassigned to minor-league camp. Freeman, a right-handed pitcher, had yet to make an appearance with the club while Barnhart, a catcher, had one hit in nine at-bats.